It’s like Robert Frost said, “Nothing gold can stay,” and so ends ND’s 26 game home winning streak. This was a painful game to watch because it was such a winnable game. In so many ways, this reminded me of that South Florida game in 2011. Not to take anything away from the Bearcats, but as a team I thought they were greatly inferior to ND, but they separated themselves in 3 distinct areas: QB, coaching, and Turnover/Penalty differential. ND could have won this game and really should have won it but even before the season began, we all knew that this was going to be a bit of a down year or a bridge year, if you will. Looking at the schedule earlier in the wiser posters (not me) looked at the Cincinnati game as one ND would probably lose, and perhaps that’s what makes this one so painful.
He Said It Best (Perspective)-
Coin Toss- I spoke about this last week. Cincy won the toss and wisely elected to kick off. They stop ND on their 1st drive (INT) and now they have some fire in them. They eventually end the 1st half up 17-0 and they’re getting the ball back to start the 2nd half. Mike Tirico was talking about the effect of scoring in to start the 2nd when you just scored to end the 1st, “Its such a game changer when that happens.” Indeed. If Cincy made that FG to start the 2nd and went up 20-0 this game was over. As it was, we at least had some chance to pull it off. Of course, ND didn’t have a choice here, but BK should take a lesson from this: When you’re offense is suspect and your defense is very good, DEFER UNTIL THE 2nd HALF!
1st Drive- It started out so well and ended so poorly. A good long run by Williams to start and really moving the ball with Mayer really had me thinking they had turned things around offensively. It was looking so good, I thought they made the right move going for it on 4th and 10 at the 36 and it proved to be the right move (more on that later). I liked the play calling, I thought Rees was maximizing Coan’s strengths and getting the ball out quickly, and then, disaster with that INT.
QBs- 4 QBs in total took the field on Saturday and by far the best one was Desmond Ridder. This was Ridder’s 39th start, all with the same team. ND practiced with 3 QBs during the week. That makes a big difference. On another note, Ridder is a heck of a success story as a human being and a “Girl Dad.” Kudos to him and his Mom on all they have accomplished. https://www.thefocus.news/sports/desmond-ridder-father/
Old Friends- Michael Young and Mike Denbrock returned to ND Stadium and made a difference. I really like seeing ND guys of the past make good, just not against us. I’m sure someone has more info on Denbrock but he was finished as OC after that disastrous 2016 season, IIRC, and little if any of the blame should have fallen on him. Just my opinion, but Denbrock > Rees.
Rees- As I mentioned above, the 1st drive was great but after that I thought this whole game plan was terrible. In that opening drive, Mayer was targeted 4 times with 4 receptions for 32 yards. In the remainder of the game he was only targeted 7 times with 4 receptions. Even the announcers were saying to avoid the cornerbacks and throw to the TEs. It was an extremely frustrating game to watch, offensively. One of the announcers said it best about the offensive game plan: “I’m not sure what they’re trying to do.”
One of The Strangest Things I’ve Ever Seen- You’re down 17-0 in 2nd half and you’re starting to see some life in your team. Williams makes 2 good runs to pick up a first down. Pyne throws one incompletion then two long passes, one to Mayer for 15 yds, getting him back in the action, and the other to Austin for 17 yds, finally getting him involved and how do you respond? By bringing in Buchner to run the ball up the middle where you’ve had little success all day and all year. It was a real head scratcher for me.
But It Gets Worse. 3 plays later they go for it 4th down and the ball was nowhere near Lenzy. It looked like Pyne had plenty of time and protection, it was just a missed communication. You’re down 17 points at home, go for the FG. Try and revitalize your team and your fans. I thought it was a real missed opportunity.
Post(s) of the Game- I gotta call it like I see it.
Bertrand- Led the team in tackles again, but I think he’s playing a position not particularly well suited for his skill set and I think he played every snap and it showed. On a positive note, he did have a big break up in the end zone on Cincy’s 1st drive of the 2nd half, forcing the FGA.
Tyree- The fortunes of war turn quickly. One week after sparking ND to a big win over Wisconsin with a KO return he made a costly fumble in this game. This led to a Cincy FG right after they scored a TD and really gave them some breathing room but more importantly, confidence and momentum. It happens and he’ll recover just fine, but it had to be noted.
Pyne- Disclaimer: I’m a guy who thought Coan should be starting. One of the real knocks on the coaching staff that I’ve read and that I agree with is when they moved away from Coan and brought Pyne in. They waited far too long. That said, before people go thinking that Pyne is some kind of savior, he didn’t have the best game either (see the missed pass to Lenzy mentioned earlier). He was 9-22 for 143 yds and a TD. The numbers weren’t great but the offense did move better with him, this week and last. Of particular note, I thought overall the O-line looked better this week, but I thought they were markedly better when Pyne was the QB. This is a very fair assessment here:
It Was Over When- Ridder took over on Cincy’s 2nd to last possession, going 3-3 and 47 yards passing before running it in for a TD to seal the game. It might well have been over before that, but ND did have it chances and still could have won this game.
Post Game Post-of-the-Game-
Close the Book- It’s time to move on and we’re on to Virginia Tech.
He Said It Best (Perspective)-
Coin Toss- I spoke about this last week. Cincy won the toss and wisely elected to kick off. They stop ND on their 1st drive (INT) and now they have some fire in them. They eventually end the 1st half up 17-0 and they’re getting the ball back to start the 2nd half. Mike Tirico was talking about the effect of scoring in to start the 2nd when you just scored to end the 1st, “Its such a game changer when that happens.” Indeed. If Cincy made that FG to start the 2nd and went up 20-0 this game was over. As it was, we at least had some chance to pull it off. Of course, ND didn’t have a choice here, but BK should take a lesson from this: When you’re offense is suspect and your defense is very good, DEFER UNTIL THE 2nd HALF!
1st Drive- It started out so well and ended so poorly. A good long run by Williams to start and really moving the ball with Mayer really had me thinking they had turned things around offensively. It was looking so good, I thought they made the right move going for it on 4th and 10 at the 36 and it proved to be the right move (more on that later). I liked the play calling, I thought Rees was maximizing Coan’s strengths and getting the ball out quickly, and then, disaster with that INT.
QBs- 4 QBs in total took the field on Saturday and by far the best one was Desmond Ridder. This was Ridder’s 39th start, all with the same team. ND practiced with 3 QBs during the week. That makes a big difference. On another note, Ridder is a heck of a success story as a human being and a “Girl Dad.” Kudos to him and his Mom on all they have accomplished. https://www.thefocus.news/sports/desmond-ridder-father/
Old Friends- Michael Young and Mike Denbrock returned to ND Stadium and made a difference. I really like seeing ND guys of the past make good, just not against us. I’m sure someone has more info on Denbrock but he was finished as OC after that disastrous 2016 season, IIRC, and little if any of the blame should have fallen on him. Just my opinion, but Denbrock > Rees.
Rees- As I mentioned above, the 1st drive was great but after that I thought this whole game plan was terrible. In that opening drive, Mayer was targeted 4 times with 4 receptions for 32 yards. In the remainder of the game he was only targeted 7 times with 4 receptions. Even the announcers were saying to avoid the cornerbacks and throw to the TEs. It was an extremely frustrating game to watch, offensively. One of the announcers said it best about the offensive game plan: “I’m not sure what they’re trying to do.”
One of The Strangest Things I’ve Ever Seen- You’re down 17-0 in 2nd half and you’re starting to see some life in your team. Williams makes 2 good runs to pick up a first down. Pyne throws one incompletion then two long passes, one to Mayer for 15 yds, getting him back in the action, and the other to Austin for 17 yds, finally getting him involved and how do you respond? By bringing in Buchner to run the ball up the middle where you’ve had little success all day and all year. It was a real head scratcher for me.
But It Gets Worse. 3 plays later they go for it 4th down and the ball was nowhere near Lenzy. It looked like Pyne had plenty of time and protection, it was just a missed communication. You’re down 17 points at home, go for the FG. Try and revitalize your team and your fans. I thought it was a real missed opportunity.
Post(s) of the Game- I gotta call it like I see it.
Bertrand- Led the team in tackles again, but I think he’s playing a position not particularly well suited for his skill set and I think he played every snap and it showed. On a positive note, he did have a big break up in the end zone on Cincy’s 1st drive of the 2nd half, forcing the FGA.
Tyree- The fortunes of war turn quickly. One week after sparking ND to a big win over Wisconsin with a KO return he made a costly fumble in this game. This led to a Cincy FG right after they scored a TD and really gave them some breathing room but more importantly, confidence and momentum. It happens and he’ll recover just fine, but it had to be noted.
Pyne- Disclaimer: I’m a guy who thought Coan should be starting. One of the real knocks on the coaching staff that I’ve read and that I agree with is when they moved away from Coan and brought Pyne in. They waited far too long. That said, before people go thinking that Pyne is some kind of savior, he didn’t have the best game either (see the missed pass to Lenzy mentioned earlier). He was 9-22 for 143 yds and a TD. The numbers weren’t great but the offense did move better with him, this week and last. Of particular note, I thought overall the O-line looked better this week, but I thought they were markedly better when Pyne was the QB. This is a very fair assessment here:
It Was Over When- Ridder took over on Cincy’s 2nd to last possession, going 3-3 and 47 yards passing before running it in for a TD to seal the game. It might well have been over before that, but ND did have it chances and still could have won this game.
Post Game Post-of-the-Game-
Close the Book- It’s time to move on and we’re on to Virginia Tech.
